Release Number: 10-498-NEW/BOS 2010-175
Mon., April 26, 2010
Contact: Ted Fitzgerald
Phone: 617-565-2074
E-mail: fitzgerald.edmund@dol.gov

US Labor Department's OSHA cites Long Island, NY, contractor for cave-in hazards after employee is caught in 16-foot deep hole at East Hills worksite
OSHA urges employers to heed safety standards when employees work in excavations

WESTBURY, N.Y. -- The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Antorino Sewer & Drain, an Islandia, N.Y., contractor, for seven alleged serious violations of workplace safety standards following a Dec. 8, 2009, incident in which a worker became trapped in a 16-foot hole while installing a cesspool at an East Hills, N.Y., residential worksite. The contractor faces a total of $11,700 in proposed fines.

The citations were issued after OSHA's investigation found that the excavation lacked cave-in protection, did not have a ladder or other safe means of exit, had excavated material stored at its edge and had not been inspected by a competent person with knowledge and authority to identify and correct such hazards. In addition, the employee lacked a protective helmet and had accessed the excavation by riding in the bucket of a backhoe. OSHA issues serious citations when death or serious physical harm is likely to result from hazards about which the employer knew or should have known.

"Although no worker was seriously injured in this particular instance, the possibility of death or severe injury was real and present," said Anthony Ciuffo, OSHA's Long Island area director. "An unprotected excavation can become a grave in seconds and nearly did so here. This incident is a stark example of how dangerous it can be inside an excavation that lacks proper sloping or shoring, especially in the low cohesive and sandy soil we have here on Long Island."

"Warmer weather will bring an increase in excavation work and an increase in excavation hazards if employers fail to follow basic, common sense and legally required safeguards," said Robert Kulick, OSHA's regional administrator in New York. "I urge all employers conducting excavation work to assign a trained and competent person to examine each excavation and ensure it adheres to OSHA standards before they have workers enter them."

OSHA standards require that all excavations five feet or deeper be sloped or shored or otherwise protected against collapse. Detailed information on excavation hazards and safeguards is available on line at http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/trenchingexcavation/index.html.

Antorino Sewer and Drain has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, meet with the OSHA area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. The inspections were conducted by OSHA's Long Island Area Office in Westbury; telephone 516-334-3344.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to assure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at http://www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audiotape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America's employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit http://www.dol.gov/compliance.